City fines Red Carpet for staying open too long

The Red Carpet Nightclub has been fined $750 for violating the terms of its liquor license.

The St. Cloud City Council issued a $750 civil penalty for the violation. It's the first violation the Red Carpet has had in the past two years, according to city documents.

The city found that on Nov. 30 the Red Carpet allowed patrons inside the bar after the 2:30 a.m. closing time.

An administrative hearing was conducted in March. The hearing officer found that a violation had occurred and imposed an administrative fine of $100. That fine has already been paid.

According to city documents, police saw people inside the Red Carpet after it closed on Nov. 30. It appeared that they were drinking.

City ordinance says liquor license holders cannot serve alcohol or allow an open bottle or open receptacle containing alcohol after 2:30 a.m.

City ordinance also says people must leave a bar 30 minutes after liquor can legally be served and doors must be closed and locked.

The administrative hearing officer found that there were people inside the bar after it closed. Those individuals did have open containers with them but the police did not test them to see if they contained alcohol.

So the officer concluded that there was only one violation to the liquor license.

Follow Kari Petrie on Twitter @karipetrie.

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